“I was friends with Jihad for five years. His death hurts me a lot,” Hamid said. “I don’t know what happened and why”, the supermarket owner was therefore very surprised that the police investigated his Sham Market in Hoogeveen. The detectives also investigated his home in Den Ham.
What was investigated in his supermarket by the detectives and whether anything was taken, Hamid says he does not know. “After three days I got the key back, they didn’t say anything to me.” Police spokesman Chantal Westerhoff says that data carriers have been seized during the searches. This can be anything with data on it, such as telephones or laptops.
The body of Jihad Jafo was found in May in the Almelo-De Haandrik canal in Overijssel. He had been missing since December. Jafo turned out to have been killed by a crime. His body was wrapped in garbage bags, tied together with tape and decorative cord. It was then weighted with a 17 kg tripod from a fire hose.
Jafo was involved in drug transport in the past. The police take into account that he may have been involved in a new transport and that problems have arisen about it. But the detective team emphasizes that there may have been another reason for his violent death.
It is possible that the victim had an appointment with supermarket owner Hamid on the day of his disappearance. He tells RTV Oost that he was asked by victim Jihad to deliver groceries for his child’s birthday. “He wanted Arabic cheese, bread and cola. I also told the police last January.”
Hamid says he is not a suspect in the murder investigation to his own knowledge. He says he does not know why his house and supermarket were searched.